The Emerging Travel Group, whose brands include Ostrovok, RateHawk and ZenHotels, has raised $10 million in funding.
The round is led by technology entrepreneur Lev Leviev and the family office of Igor and Dmitri Bukhman, co-founders of game development company Playrix.
The funding will go towards accelerating the group’s expansion, with particular focus on its RateHawk B2B brand.
RateHawk launched in 2016 as an online hotel booking platform for travel professionals.
According to a statement it now provides access to more than a million accommodation units via its API and web portal.
The statement adds that RateHawk’s turnover grew by more than 300% in 2018.
The company began operating in 21 new markets including France, Greece, Poland, Turkey and the U.K. last year and now plans to double international staff to fuel further growth for the business.
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Further investment in technology is also part of the strategy.
Felix Shpilman, Emerging Travel Group’s CEO, says: “We intend to focus on the product, localization, and customer support to make RateHawk the default booking engine for any travel professional worldwide.”
To help with its ambitious growth strategy, RateHawk is planning to hire about 50 managers in western and southern Europe to focus on business development.
It also plans to recruit 25 additional employees in Central, Eastern and Northern Europe and create two commercial teams for the U.S. and Canada.
Similar plans are in place for expansion in the Middle East and Asia.